Cleaning up after Sandy damage, as Congress postpones vote for aid

A destroyed home is viewed along the beach in the Belle Harbor neighborhood in the Rockaways on Jan. 2, in the Queens borough of New York City. Criticism, including by President Barack Obama, has been directed at the Republican House's decision to adjourn without passing a Hurricane Sandy aid bill. According to early estimates, Hurricane Sandy inflicted at least $50 to $60 billion in damage across the Northeast, making it one of the most destructive storms ever.

Spencer Platt / Getty Images

The remains of part of the boardwalk lie along the beach in the Rockaways on Jan. 2, in the Queens borough of New York City.

Tracy Connor, NBC News -- House Republicans came under a blistering bipartisan assault Wednesday for punting on Sandy relief, with one GOP congressman saying anyone from New York or New Jersey who donates money to his brethren “should have his head examined.”

The governors of New York and New Jersey accused the GOP-led House of a “dereliction of duty.” Rep. Peter King, a New York Republican, called the surprise vote pull-back “disgraceful, indefensible and immoral.”